Pre-Proposal Conference Summary - Statewide Cybersecurity Resources BPM057598.pdf

Title: Statewide Cybersecurity Resources Request for Proposal (RFP) #: BPM057598 Virtual Pre-Proposal Conference Summary

Via Google Meet DATE: August 11, 2026, at 1:00 PM.

The State of Maryland Department of General Services, Office of State Procurement, conducted a Pre- Proposal Conference remotely on August 11, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. Local Time, via Google Meet. This summary is being issued to document the Conference.

I) Welcome and Introduction:

Brad Cary, the Department of General Services, Office of State Procurement (DGS-OPS) procurement officer for this project, welcomed everyone in attendance. The Potential Offerors were asked to put their contact information in Google Chat to constitute their introduction and attendance. Introductions were made by the other State employees in attendance. The State employees in attendance were.

Brad Cary – DGS-OSP Brandford Quartey – DGS-OSP Lance Cleghorn – DoIT Yevin Jayatilake – DoIT Ernest Nnoko – DoIT

The Procurement Officer indicated that based on the number of attendees at the Google Conference, all questions should be sent to the Procurement Officer in writing. The Procurement Officer also indicated a Frequently Asked Questions will be published after the Question-and- Answer closing date (August 17, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. Local Time).

Number of Vendors in attendance via video: 201 Number of Vendors in attendance via Phone: 14 Attendance Sheet: 174 (These are those that provided their information in Google Chat/via email to form the attendance list)

II) General Procurement Information:

Brad, the Procurement Officer, told the group the purpose of the pre-proposal conference was to give everyone guidance on the State procurement process and to provide an overview of this RFP. He emphasized that today’s session is merely for guidance and attendees should not rely on verbal communications for information regarding the RFP. Questions and comments must be submitted in writing, by email, to the Procurement Officer for a formal response. He then gave an overview of the RFP, highlighting essential portions of the solicitation.

He reminded everyone to review the Key Information Summary Sheet on page 2 and 3. He also indicated that any change or clarification to the RFP will be done through amendments posted on eMMA, and all amendments must be acknowledged/signed by the Offeror.

He reminded the Potential Offerors that the due date to submit questions is August 17, 2026, at 2:00 PM ET. He also emphasized the due date for this procurement as 2:00 pm on September 18, 2026.

Award Basis – The Procurement Officer informed the vendors at the conference that the contract will be multiple awards to offerors who meet the requirements and submit the most advantageous offers. A down-select process may be used for this solicitation. Brad explained that, under the down-select process, the Offeror’s Past Performance and Reference Letters will be evaluated to determine the Offeror’s demonstrated success in sourcing and providing resources to clients. The six most advantageous proposals in each functional area will advance to the next phase of the technical evaluation process.

Brad also emphasized that an Offeror may only respond to one functional area.

Brad suggested that Offerors allow plenty of time to submit their proposals on eMMA. He stressed that if the proposal is late, even by one minute, it cannot be accepted!

III) MBE and VSBE Goal and SBR Designation

Brad informed the potential Offerors that this RFP has an overall MBE subcontractor participation goal of 15% for each functional area.

Brad informed the potential Offerors that this RFP has an overall VSBE subcontractor participation goal of 3% for each functional area.

Failure to include the completed required MBE / VSBE forms will result in a determination that your Proposal is not reasonably susceptible for award.

Brad stressed the importance of the potential offerors correctly filling out MBE / VSBE forms.

Failure of an Offeror to properly complete, sign, and submit the required attachments when it submits its Technical Response(s) to the RFP shall result in the State’s rejection of the Offeror’s Proposal. He also informed the potential Offerors that if the recommended awardee fails to return each required completed document within the required time, the Procurement Officer may determine that the recommended awardee is not responsible and, therefore, not eligible for Contract award. If the Contract has already been awarded, the award is voidable.

IV) Submission Requirements:

The Procurement Officer reviewed the importance of the submission instructions in 5.1 of the RFP. Proposals shall be submitted in two (2) separate volumes as described in Section 5.1

He also suggested that when creating a technical response, Offerors should keep their proposals in the same order as the RFP requirements in Section 5.3. By keeping the proposal in the same order, Offerors will be sure to have addressed everything required in the solicitation.

The technical portion must contain all of the required information, all forms, affidavits, etc. The attendees were informed that if all required forms are not included, their proposal may be deemed non-responsive or not susceptible for award.

The Procurement Officer indicated that Offerors may submit proposals for only one functional area, including submitting only one price form for the correct functional area.

Brad also suggested that Offerors carefully list full, accurate, and current contact and reference information.

V) Technical Evaluation Criteria:

Brad indicated that technical evaluation criteria are:

1) Offeror’s understanding of the Functional Area’s scope and objectives

2) Offeror’s Qualification and Capabilities, including proposed subcontractors as noted in section 2.4.1

3) Experience and Qualifications of Proposed Staff

4) Demonstration of success in sourcing and providing resources to clients

5) Economic Benefit to the State of Maryland

6) MBE / VSBE participation and compliance

Brad informed the Offerors that the technical factors and financial factors are weighed equally in this procurement.

VI) Offeror Minimum Qualifications

Brad informed the attendees that there are no minimum qualifications for this solicitation.

VII) Scope of Work

Lance Cleghorn provided an overview of the scope of work described in the RFP, stressing the key points and functional areas.

VIII) Questions and Answer

Brad reiterated that based on the number of attendees at the Google conference, all questions should be submitted in writing to him, the Procurement Officer.

IX) Closing Remarks:

1. The Procurement reminded all potential Offerors to follow the RFP instructions and include signed copies of all required documents. Electronic signatures are appropriate for all documents which will be submitted with proposals.

2. The potential Offerors were informed that a summary of today’s meeting, the PowerPoint Presentation, and the attendees list will be posted online as soon as possible.

3. The Procurement Officer stressed that all proposals must be submitted by the day and time specified in the Key Information Summary Sheet.

The Procurement Officer thanked everyone for their attendance, and the meeting concluded. The pre-proposal conference adjourned at approximately 2:00 p.m.

Prepared By:

Brad Cary Procurement Officer August 13, 2026